Male announces fresh polls on November 9, 16; international pressure on Waheed government

NEW DELHI: Maldives has announced fresh dates for presidential poll following international pressure on the incumbent government. Round one will be held on November 9 and if no candidate wins over 50% votes, a runoff poll between leading contenders will be held on November 16. An official in the Ministry of External Affairs described the development as an achievement.

India had been tightening diplomatic screws on Male to hold a free and fair poll on schedule, after the ruling dispensation resorted to actions seen as thwarting front-runner Mohamed Nasheed’s chance of getting reelected. New Delhi asked permanent members of the UN Security Council and countries in the region, notably Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, to send a stern message to Male not to delay the elections.

Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh met ambassadors of the US, UK, Russia, France and China, besides envoys from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Australia last Saturday and appraised them of India’s principled stand to bring political stability in Maldives.

The foreign ministry has made it clear to envoys that an international diplomatic offensive was the best step to compel the Waheed government to allow elections, which were not completed after Nasheed – ousted last year in a coup – appeared to emerge as the winner after the first round of polling in September. A source said that the ambassadors agreed with India’s stand.